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Watching television can be a great way to kick back and relax. But if you're a cable TV customer and overpaying for services, that relaxation can quickly turn to stress once you receive a high monthly bill. You do, however, have the power to reduce or even eliminate your bill. Here are some ways to make that happen:

Review your bill. With electronic billing and payments, many people today don't take the time to open and read their bills. It's important to read the bill and become familiar with the charges. Look for hidden fees as well as fees for services for which you did not subscribe.

Know your payment history. Review your monthly payments and see if there have been increases in the amount you pay from month to month. Also, look to see how long you've been a customer and whether or not you have paid your bills on time. If you're a good customer, you may have a bigger negotiating edge when you call your cable company.

Look at competitive offers. Chances are, you've been receiving direct mail or email from other cable providers eager to earn your business. Take some time to review those offers to see if you can save money.

Call your cable company. Once you've reviewed your cable bill and looked at what other providers are offering, call your cable company. Explain to them you are considering cancelling your service due to the high cost. Many companies actually have retention departments established for the purpose of keeping good customers from leaving. Don't be afraid to ask for help!

Ditch premium channels. When you signed up with your cable company, you may have been offered free HBO and other premium channels for an introductory period. After this period expires, you will be charged for these services. You can reduce your monthly bill by cancelling these premium channels, which can be costly.

Purchase your own equipment. Your cable company may also be charging you a set monthly fee for rental of equipment, such as your router. You may be able to save money by purchasing the router outright.

Consider cancelling your service altogether. With subscription services, such as Netflix and Hulu, many people are getting rid of cable all together.

Take these steps today to put the power to save where it belongs — in your hands.

We recently cancelled Cox Cable. Was getting too expensive. We switched to Direct TV. More channels and
with the choice package/ wireless throughout the house, $77 (includes taxes) a month for 2 years.

Will Haworth
on
7/22/2017
at
4:24 PM

I would like to hear some specific examples... I am fed up with paying high prices for cable...

Nora
on
7/22/2017
at
9:21 PM

Thank you for this article.People need this advice. I cut the cable several years ago and get by happily on a combination of a state of the art professionally installed roof antenna which allows me to get the local channels for news and weather and PBS and ION Television and Fox. But that's it. I miss CNN and MSNBC but not enough to pay $179 a month - $2000 + annually. I also have Netflix which is great. I don't care about sports which would not fly in most households !
I tried all of your negotiating tips 2 years ago with Cox. That cut no ice even with new subscribers being offered $89 monthly for 2 years. " Young lady", I said: " I intend to watch T V for at least 10 more years and I am not going to pay $ 20,000 to do so.She argued that my math was not correct and that I would not get to watch any TV without them. Think about it folks. What is it costing you decade after decade ?

Hubert Peery
on
7/23/2017
at
1:01 AM

you can also go to the old antenna again, all local channels and their sub bands have good oldies.

Arvest Blog Admin
on
7/24/2017
at
7:08 PM

Hi Will,
In addition to the options listed in the article and these other comments, we suggest searching for promotions from competing cable/satellite companies as well as streaming services such as Sling TV, Playstation Vue, DirecTVNOW, and others. Services such as Netflix and Hulu are very popular as well.
Hope that helps!

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